Maxi Hughes returned to winning ways on Friday evening, but he had to work hard for his victory.
Hughes lost a world title eliminator to William Zepeda in March and has not boxed since. Having no date and desperately trying to stop the rust from building up, 34-year-old Hughes asked GBM’s Izzy Asif for a spot on Friday night’s show and fought Greek Efstathios Antonas for six rounds at lightweight.
Hughes (27-7-2, 6 KO) failed to find a docile opponent willing to play the game and let him find his way back. On paper, Antonas (7-3-2, 2 KO) wasn’t in Hughes’ class, but he came for the win and made Hughes work every second of the fight.
Hughes was stung by long, straight shots from Antonas in the first round and looked out of sorts on several other occasions as the relatively unknown Greek fighter desperately tried to pull off a massive upset.
Hughes’ quality kept him half a step ahead throughout the match, but he certainly felt the pace and said as much to his corner before answering the bell in the sixth and final round.
Hughes quickly finished off what could have been a difficult final three minutes. A massive right hook knocked Antonas down hard, and as he got back to his feet, Hughes finished things off with a clean left.
It wasn’t the prettiest or cleanest victory of Hughes’ career, but it was a very important night’s work.
“He was ready for it and he tried,” Hughes said of Antonas. “I had a difficult start and I thought my feet weren’t in the right place. He grabbed the top of my head. It bothered me for a few seconds, but I thought, “I know where I am, get back to vaccinating and get to work.” This of course gave him confidence and he insisted on fighting.
“I felt his power and I felt his strength, but I had to show my class. I had to dig around there. I felt the pace and its size. He told me to work for it. Sean [O’Hagan, my coach] he sent me for the last round and told me he was tired and not to fight him. My instincts told me to get up and fight. I think it was the right hook that hit him on the button and knocked him to the ground. He never recovered and a straight left ended it all.
Hughes struggled on the British stage for years before getting his shot at a career.
He traveled to Oklahoma last summer and appeared to defeat former unified Australian lightweight champion George Kambosos, but Hughes lost by controversial majority decision.
While Kambosos continued to fight the brilliant Vasyl Lomachenko for the vacant IBF title, Hughes was rewarded with a trip to Las Vegas and a final eliminator against the wild William Zepeda and was stopped after four brutal rounds.
Hughes’ American experience has not dampened his enthusiasm or self-confidence, and he still hopes to return to world level. After defeating Antonas, he called for a rematch with Kambosos.
“I am as ambitious as ever,” said Hughes. “I know my age – on paper I’m a veteran – but I feel as young as ever. I feel like I’m in the prime of my life. Much to the dismay of my wife and mother, I have some of that in me again. I feel like I can get back to the world level and challenge myself with the best fights, so it was a good stepping stone. We won after a good fight, so let’s see what will happen in the future.
“An Australian is watching the fight. This is what a true Greek warrior is like. George “Kambozo” is a real Greek warrior, not a fake one. If George is man enough, I’ve been calling for you since our fight, so come here. You said you wanted to come to the UK. Let’s finish this. See if you can handle one of them.
For over ten years, John Evans has been contributing to many well-known publications and websites. You can follow John on X @John_Evans79.
#Maxi #Hughes #removes #rust #calls #George #Kambosos #rematch